Gwajin ingancin abinci wanda bisa ga al'ada yana ɗaukar sa'o'i - ko kwanaki - don yin a cikin lab yanzu ana iya kammala shi cikin mintuna kaɗan, ba tare da buƙatar ko da nisa daga layin samarwa ba.
"Wannan shine canjin wasa ga masana'antar. Yana ba ku damar fita daga dakin gwaje-gwaje da gwadawa a cikin layin samarwa ko ma a fagen, "in ji Luis Rodriguez-Saona, farfesa a kimiyyar abinci da fasaha a Jami'ar Jihar Ohio.
A cikin shekaru 16 na ƙarshe, masanin kimiyyar abinci tare da Jihar Ohio Kwalejin Abinci, Noma, da Kimiyyar Muhalli ya kasance yana nazarin amfani da fasahar infrared don sanin ingancin kayan abinci. Rodriguez-Saona kuma masanin kimiyya ne tare da Cibiyar Bincike da Ci gaban Noma ta Ohio, sashin bincike na kwalejin.
A cikin shekaru hudu da suka gabata, na'urorin daukar hoto masu daukar hoto sun bullo a kasuwa, kuma aikin nasa ya yi matukar tasiri wajen daidaita su da bukatun masana'antar abinci.
"Tare da ruwan tumatir, za mu iya kallon halaye 12 daban-daban a cikin kasa da minti daya," in ji Rodriguez-Saona. "Duk wannan zai ɗauki sa'o'i da yawa, idan ba kwanaki ba, don tattarawa da gwada samfurin ɗaya ta hanyar gargajiya."
Daga cikin sauran haɗin gwiwar, a cikin shekaru biyar da suka gabata Rodriguez-Saona ya kulla yarjejeniya tare da League of Food Processors don gwada ruwan tumatir da manna tumatir. California yana samar da fiye da kashi 90 na tumatur da ake sarrafawa a kasar da kuma kusan rabin tumatur din da ake nomawa a duniya.
"Aikin yana da ban mamaki," in ji Rodriguez-Saona. "Suna da layukan samarwa da yawa, kuma kowace sa'a suna aika samfurori zuwa dakin gwaje-gwaje don lura da ingancin batches daban-daban."
Ana buƙatar irin wannan gwajin don tabbatar da aminci da ingancin ruwan tumatir, wanda yawancin abin da ke ci gaba da sarrafa shi zuwa man tumatir da sauran kayayyakin.
A halin yanzu, masana'antar tana amfani da fasaha don haɓaka sa ido na al'ada, amma aikin Rodriguez-Saona na iya zama kayan aiki don samun amincewa don amfani da shi azaman hanyar gwaji ta farko. Ya zuwa yanzu, Rodriguez-Saona ya buga biyar takardun kimiyya akan amfani da fasahar infrared don sarrafa tumatir.
"Yanzu, suna ɗaukar samfurori, suna kawo su zuwa dakin gwaje-gwaje masu inganci, kuma ana ɗaukar sa'o'i da yawa don kammala wasu gwaje-gwajen. Suna kuma buƙatar ƙwararrun ma'aikata don yin wannan aikin. Yana ɗaukar lokaci kuma yana da tsada. "
Idan gwajin ya gano wata matsala tare da samfurin, mai sarrafawa zai buƙaci sayar da shi a ragi ko sake sarrafa shi.
"Amma tare da wannan rukunin - yana da ƙanƙanta, kamar akwatin abincin rana - za ku iya shigar da wannan a cikin shuka don yin kima na ainihin lokaci game da ingancin samfurin, da kuma yin tweaks ga sarrafawa nan da nan maimakon jiran sakamakon lab ya dawo. .”
A cikin karatunsa, Rodriguez-Saona yana amfani da firikwensin infrared wanda manyan masu haɓakawa suka yi, gami da Agilent Technologies da Thermo Fisher Scientific. An kera na'urorin hasken wutar lantarki masu ɗaukar nauyi da farko don Ma'aikatar Tsaro, Hukumar Yaki da Magunguna da kuma masana'antar harhada magunguna don gano kasancewar abubuwan fashewa da magungunan haram da kuma gwada magunguna na jabun. Wasu daga cikin na'urori masu ɗaukar hoto sun kai girman akwatunan kayan aiki wasu kuma na hannu ne.
"Mu ne farkon waɗanda suka sami waɗannan kayan aikin don duba aikace-aikacen a cikin masana'antar abinci," in ji shi.
Tsarin gwaji yana da sauƙi mai sauƙi: Samfurin samfurin, ƙasa da fis, ana sanya shi akan na'urar daukar hotan takardu ko kuma an duba shi tare da na'urar sikirin da ke riƙe da hannu. Hasken infrared yana kai hari ga takamaiman ƙungiyoyin aiki a cikin kwayoyin da ke cikin abinci; kwayoyin halitta daban-daban suna ɗaukar haske a mitoci daban-daban.
"Wannan yana samar da bakan, wanda ya dogara da wannan hasken haske," in ji Rodriguez-Saona. "Muna ƙaddamar da wannan bakan don yin nazari mai yawa don nuna bayanan da muke nema.
“Na daidaita bakan zuwa hoto mai ban mamaki. Ya ƙunshi bayanai da yawa, amma don samun bayanan da kuke nema, kuna buƙatar yin nazari sosai. Binciken multivariate kamar gilashin haɓakawa ne wanda ke ba ku damar yin hakan, ta amfani da chemometrics don gano takamaiman sigina wanda ke da alaƙa da takamaiman kwayoyin halitta.
"A gaskiya, yana kama da neman Waldo."
Rodriguez-Saona ya ƙirƙira algorithms don na'urorin daukar hoto don amfani da su wajen gano abubuwa daban-daban na kayan abinci, da nasa. karatu tabbatar da cewa sakamakon ya yi daidai da na gwaje-gwajen lab na gargajiya. Halayen abinci da aka gwada a cikin tumatir da aka sarrafa suna mayar da hankali kan daidaito, rubutu da ɗanɗano, gami da daskararru masu narkewa, pH, acidity, danko, sugars da Organic acid.
Baya ga aikin tumatur da aka sarrafa, Rodriguez-Saona da tawagarsa na daliban da suka kammala karatun digiri sun yi nazarin halaye daban-daban na kwakwalwan dankalin turawa, ciki har da kimanta ingancin mai da kasancewar acrylamide.
Ingancin mai lamari ne, kamar yadda mai da kitse na ɗaya daga cikin mafi yawan jabun abinci a cikin masana'antu, da kuma hanyoyin gargajiya don gwada su suna cin lokaci, rikitarwa da tsada da kuma samar da adadi mai yawa, in ji Rodriguez-Saona. A watan Yuli, yana gudanar da wani zama, Zina Mai Ƙarfafa Tattalin Arziki: Kalubale da Ƙirƙirar Ƙwarewa a Gano Cin Haɗin Abinci, a Cibiyar Nazarin Fasahar Abinci na shekara-shekara a Chicago, kuma za ta gabatar da fasahar šaukuwa don tantance masu cin abinci.
Kasancewar acrylamide a cikin kwakwalwan dankalin turawa da sauran nau'ikan dankalin da aka soya a yanayin zafi ya dade da zama batu a cikin masana'antu, kuma a cikin 2010, Hukumar Abinci da Aikin Noma ta hadin gwiwa da kwamitin Hukumar Lafiya ta Duniya sun ba da suna da damuwa game da lafiyar ɗan adam. Amma kayan aikin da ake buƙata don gwadawa don acrylamide yana da tsada-haramtawa ga yawancin kamfanoni don gudanar da gwaje-gwaje da kansu, kuma aika samfuran zuwa dakin gwaje-gwaje na ɓangare na uku na iya ɗaukar makonni don samun sakamako, in ji shi.
"A halin yanzu ana tsara matakan Acrylamide kawai a California a matsayin wani ɓangare na Shawarwari 65, wanda aka sani da sunan Amintaccen Ruwan Sha da Dokokin Tilasta Guba na 1986, amma na yi magana da yawa tare da kamfanoni kuma suna so su nemo hanyar da ta dace don auna shi. Don haka, muna kokarin bunkasa hakan. "
Rodriguez-Saona kuma yana neman tallafi daga Ma'aikatar Aikin Gona ta Amurka.
"A yanzu, muna aiki tare da kamfanoni kuma muna haɓaka algorithms waɗanda suka dace da aikace-aikacen su na musamman. Amma tare da tallafin USDA, za mu iya yin aiki kan wasu manyan matsalolin, kamar acrylamide ko lalata, da haɓaka algorithms don gudanar da gwajin infrared akan abincin da kowa zai samu.
Masu kera abinci a Ohio da sauran wurare masu sha'awar ƙarin koyo game da fasaha na iya tuntuɓar Rodriguez-Saona ta imel a rodriguez-saona.1@osu.edu ko kira 614-292-3339.